The Pirate Bay verdict is being criticized by the Swedish public and protests are being planned. Opposition to the decision is widespread, indicated partly by the surge in new memberships to Sweden’s Pirate Party. It has seen its ranks grow by 20% in the handful of hours since the verdict and the number of members is increasing by the minute.

After sentencing The Pirate Bay Four the District Court has now asked the police to investigate their own people, as the verdict in the case leaked to the public hours before it was officially announced. Whether or not the leak will have implications for the sentence is unknown.

Yesterday, The Pirate Bay Four were sentenced to a year in prison, and on top of that each of them was ordered to pay the entertainment industry $905,000 in damages. The defendants have all anounced that they will appeal, which means that the case is likely to drag on for years.